February 08, 2008

In terms of perseverance, you might need to break out a sixth star for Byers, who battled his way back from serious injuries to start at guard last season and play in 13 games. After looking like a blue-chipper as a true freshman in 2004, he missed all of 2005 and 2006 with torn cartilage in his hip and back problems, respectively. Byers played well in his first season back with USC, showing hints of why he was so highly touted coming out of high school, and laying the foundation for what should be an ever better final season.

Revised Rating: 2 stars11. WR Fred Davis, USC

Relatively anonymous through the first three years, Davis erupted his senior season, parlaying 62 catches for 881 yards and eight touchdowns into the 2007 Mackey Award. A rangy wide receiver coming out of Rogers (Ohio) High School, he added a few pounds and adjusted well as a seam-splitting tight end with a knack for making acrobatic grabs. The most prolific tight end in USC history, Davis should be plucked in one of the first two rounds of April's NFL Draft.

Revised Rating: 4.5 stars12. LB Keith Rivers, USC

A three-year starter on the weakside, Rivers distinguished himself as one of the nation's most complete linebackers, tough enough to defend the run and athletic enough to cover the pass. He finished his Trojan career with 240 tackles, twice earning first team All-Pac-10 honors, while getting plenty of All-America recognition a year ago. Destined to have a long career in the NFL, Rivers could be off the board by the end of the first round in April.

Revised Rating: 5 stars

13. DE Jeff Schweiger, USC

While Schweiger started fast as a true freshman, injuries and all that Trojan depth prevented him from ever carrving out any sustained level of excellence. He got buried on the depth chart, eventually opting last year to return home to San Jose, where he'll play for Dick Tomey and the Spartans in 2008. In a different environment and against lesser competition, Schweiger has a second chance to impress pro scouts and add a couple of stars to his revised rating.Revised Rating: 1.5 stars

Jeff Byers' rating is too harsh on the fact that he still has two years left of eligibility (Jeff will gain an extra year from NCAA for medical reasons). When you consider that Jeff was the best offensive lineman we had last season and has a real possibility of being an All-American next season, you have to give the guy at least a 3-star rating.

January 22, 2008

1. Sam Baker, OT, Southern CaliforniaBiggest pro: Agility.Biggest con: Bulk/strength.Biggest questions: Can he add enough bulk and strength to make a solid contribution as a run-blocker in the NFL? In turn, will he develop more of a mean streak?Draft projection: Mid-first round.

4. Fred Davis, TE, Southern CaliforniaBiggest pro: Seam-stretching receiver.Biggest con: Lack of strength as an in-line blocker.Biggest question: Is he functional enough as a blocker to play traditional tight end role in the NFL?Draft projection: Mid-to-late first round.

Top 5 Defensive Players Who Must Live Up To The Hype

1. Sedrick Ellis, DT, Southern CaliforniaBiggest pro: Explosive quickness.Biggest con: Durability.Biggest questions: Can he anchor versus bigger blockers when teams run at him? Can he avoid the injury bug at the next level?Draft projection: Top-10 pick.

3. Keith Rivers, OLB, Southern CaliforniaBiggest pro: Motor and leadership.Biggest con: Not a playmaker in passing game.Biggest questions: Is he as fast and athletic as the perception? Is he truly an elite prospect or a bit overrated due to sensational supporting cast at USC?Draft projection: Mid-to-late first round.

Interesting that they said Sam Baker lacks a mean streak; I always thought that was one of Sam's strengths. I hate to say it, but Sam had an underwhelming year that was reminiscent, injuries and all, of a recent Trojan NFL bust by the name of Jacob Rogers.

Terrell Thomas (USC) - 6003, 197, 33 3/8, 8 2/8Notes: Did not really stand out in any one way.

The numbers mean: (1) height, (2) weight, (3) arm length, and (4) hand length. So JDB is 6'2 and 3/8", weighs 213lbs, and so on. Based on the reports I read, Sedrick Ellis, Fred Davis, and Keith Rivers had the best performances from day one. Here's a link to the video highlights from today's practice.

December 11, 2007

USC defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis, the Pacific 10 Conference's
defensive player of the year, was selected to the 2007 AP All-America
team, which was released this afternoon.

...The second team included USC's Fred Davis at tight end and Sam Baker at
tackle on the offense and end Lawrence Jackson on defense.

Trojans safety Taylor Mays was selected to the third-team defense. Also
on the third team was California receiver/return specialist DeSean
Jackson, a former Long Beach Poly High standout who was chosen as an
all-purpose player, and Oregon defensive end Nick Reed, who played at
Mission Viejo High.

Sedrick Ellis also won the "Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year" award. I thought the list was pretty solid especially compared to Rivals.com list, but the only omission that surprised me was Jeff Byers; he should have at least made it to the 2nd team. Congrats to all the players.

October 08, 2007

Although Sed didn't have a strong 4th quarter, he was absolutely dominating the 1st two and a half quarters and finished with 6 tackles and 3 sacks. The consistency in which Sed has played will make him a sure-fire 1st round pick in the draft next year.

Negative - The Entire Offense

Last week I singled out Booty for his poor play, but this week it was the entire offense's fault. The receivers played lackadaisical making silly drops and showed no ability to gain any significant YAC. The O-Line was flat out terrible in the 4th quarter giving Booty little time to throw. JDB was again off-target on the majority of his throws, locked onto receivers, made poor decisions, and showed no ability to avert pressure and make a play. The only bright spot on the offense was Fred Davis (and maybe RoJo), but even Fred made a crucial turnover.

Player of the Game - Sedrick Ellis

Sed was in the backfield the entire 1st half and really showed his freakish strength and athleticism on a few of the sacks. He and Keith Rivers have been the most consistent performers on the team.

Play of the Game - Fred Davis' 63 Yard TD Reception

Very nice play on Fred's part in angling his body to break a tackle on the sideline and then showcasing his speed to take it to the house.

Final Thoughts... - How Will PC Adjust?

So how will PC adjust to this loss? My guess is he'll maintain the status quo for the most part. He will of course address the turnover issues in practice this week, etc., but in terms of personnel, I doubt any changes will be made. Do I agree with this? In any season post 2001, I would have agreed with Coach Carroll, but I think a big change is in need largely because I see the current problem being more than just a technical issue (will elaborate later).

Every game from here on out has to be an emphatic victory. The NC is no longer within our control and the only thing we can do from this point is win big in every game and restore this team's credibility amongst the pollsters. No better team to start with than a 2-4 Arizona team at the Coliseum. Let's take it week to week...

September 24, 2007

JDB looked real sharp last night. Apart from his one bad throw for an INT, I thought he made great decisions the entire night. Yes, Wazzu has a pretty poor pass defense, but a solid performance is a solid performance.

Negative - Third Down Defense

Not many negatives in this game, but if there was one it would have to be our defense on third downs. The 3rd and 18 play in the 1st quarter was plain ugly. I'm sure the coaches will address this and things will change next week.

Player of the Game - Keith Rivers

Booty and Fred Davis both had big games, but Keith was dominant. He had 14 tackles (9 solo) and 2.5 TFL and seemed to be everywhere on the field. He shed tackles and made plays and always brought his man down.

Play of the Game - JDB to Vidal for TD

There were several plays that could have been the POG, but I thought JDB's bullet TD pass to JDB was the standout play of the game. The play requires great accuracy and velocity and JDB delivered perfectly.

Game-ball - Fred Davis

Just when you thought BFD was fading as a key player in the offense, he comes through with a 9 rec. 124 yard 2 TD performance. His YAC was impressive.

Final Thoughts... - Great Performance/CB Depth

Can't complain about the performance last night, it was flat out dominant. Next week we get Jake Locker and U-Dub in Seattle. The team will get their 1st taste of a rowdy Pac-10 crowd and it should be good experience for them for Oregon, Cal, and ASU later in the season.

Should be interesting next week watching the defense play against a mobile QB for the first time this season. The game should be a blowout, but Locker should test our team discipline.

August 23, 2007

Watched the scrimmage today and these are the things that jumped out at me:

Best Player: Stafon Johnson

I was going to say a tie between Stafon and Chauncey, but I really liked the way Stafon hit the holes. When Stafon scored his 2nd TD, you saw a little bit of everything: setting up a block, nice cut/burst, and great vision. Credit to C.J. Gable for his performance last season, but in my mind, Stafon is clearly the #2 tailback.

Biggest Surprise: Brandon Carswell

Ran very nice routes and showed great hands on a few catches.

Biggest Disappointment: Patrick Turner, Fred Davis, and JDB

Patrick Turner was nonexistent the entire scrimmage. I saw him suited up and on the field, but I don't recall him being in any play.

Fred Davis dropped a few balls that hit him square in the chest. To me that's disappointing considering he's an All-American candidate and starting senior.

I know Coach Carroll praised JDB's performance and his stats look good on paper, but his incompletions were all balls that could have been intercepted. He had one pass where he nearly the WR/TE in the back. He rushed another pass to Anthony McCoy. He forced a throw on a post route to David Ausberry that would have been intercepted by an above-average CB. Am I saying JDB is a bad QB? No, but I still think he's an average QB when pass protection is anything less than par.

Play of the Game: Allen Bradford's 30 Yard Run

Yeah, I know Stafon's run where he sped down the sideline and cutback to the middle was exciting, and I also know Vidal's TD catch where he had to readjust and make a leaping grab was great as well, but none of them came against the 1st team defense. The way Allen made Rey miss in the backfield and then turned it up a gear and sped past Kevin Ellison for a 30 yard gain was outstanding.

Overlooked Play of the Game: Taylor Mays closing the gap on Allen Bradford

I've seen no mention of this play. Allen took the handoff going
left and made a great cut in the opposite direction that literally
opened up an entire side of the field. As he sped past the outside DE/LB, Taylor Mays came racing in, cut the angle, and took Allen down. I think
Allen gained less than 10 yards on that play, but it should have been a 15+ yard run.

Most Embarrassing Play of the Game: Ronald Johnson's Kick Return

So RoJo hesitates and drops the ball but luckily it doesn't get away from him. He then runs laterally and shows nice burst up the middle and towards the sideline. All that stood before RoJo and the end zone was Joe Houston and Thomas Williams (same team). Instead of racing away from Joe by continuing up the sideline, he decides to cut back towards the middle of the field, which confuses Thomas Williams causing him to run right by Joe and he ends up being tackled. If you didn't know already, Joe Houston is a KICKER.

Straight Beastin': Sedrick Ellis

Did his usual job of clogging the middle, but what really
impressed me was his ability to run down Allen Bradford and prevent him
from turning up field. You could see the two jawing at each other from
the several run-ins.

Other Random Thoughts:

Desmond Reed should be the punt returner.

I'm not sold on Vincent Joseph being the kick returner. Yes, he averaged 20+ yards on his returns, but he also made several bad decisions (e.g. choosing to try and leap frog Cary Harris and nearly coughing up the ball in the process).

Shareece Wright would have had the hit of the day, if he was allowed to hit the QB.

At the moment, I think Josh Pinkard deserves to start over Taylor Mays. He showed great coverage one-on-one.

Overall, I came away impressed with the team. I don't think we'll be as dominant as some people are claiming, but we are definitely NC caliber.